Question for those in GB: has anyone actually completed a transaction and received an item using this service?

It seems to me, from the outside, that the "Import charges" could be a charge from the UK government, based on the value of the item being imported. When individuals ship to the UK, likely this import tax does not get reported or collected regularly or correctly, but with a professional shipping service, they likely have to have an agreement with the UK govt in place to rigorously collect every penny due.

I know that when I have shipped expensive books to the UK, the receiver sometimes has to pay the import tax before they can receive the package. I have no idea how often this has happened as usually I am not told.

I've bought a book!! (--but haven't received it yet.) Ain't you been listening?

The UK's tax is managed by HMRC. Books are exempt from any import duty or VAT under their guidelines. I read the guidance fairly recently, after contesting a case; it involved VAT being levied on slipcases DM had posted over. Books are definitely exempt. It's possible something has changed very recently, but I don't think so; I think I'd have read (or someone else would have read) about it in some book-related newsletters, etc.

You may be right though; perhaps there's more to it than first appears...

BH

Posted on: 2013/4/5 12:23

_________________You drive a hard bargain – you can have it for £10 all-in – one consolation (for you) is that you do not have to hear the cries of my children, for bread...

Forgot to add: a properly declared USPS package, I would suggest, already is a professional shipping service. There is no way that every book I've ever bought from the US, in recent years, should in fact have had import tax levied against it, but slipped through. This is the whole point of the declaration on the front. If it said "book" it did not incur any tax/charge. I don't honestly think this has changed.

BH

Posted on: 2013/4/5 12:30

_________________You drive a hard bargain – you can have it for £10 all-in – one consolation (for you) is that you do not have to hear the cries of my children, for bread...

The Global Postage Programme makes it easier for buyers in some countries outside the US to purchase items from US sellers. The seller sends the item to a global postage provider located in the US and the global postage provider sends the item to you. Using a global postage provider enables sellers to offer international postage at competitive rates and may allow items to be dispatched more quickly. In addition, your purchase is eligible for coverage through eBay Buyer Protection and PayPal Buyer Protection.

How, in the example I posted, is $18, on top of $17 normal postage, in any way competitive? That book you see, btw, is about the size of GA&U's FGoH; it's a tiny book, where you'd be paying $35+ to ship over. I don't get it...

BH

Posted on: 2013/4/5 12:36

_________________You drive a hard bargain – you can have it for £10 all-in – one consolation (for you) is that you do not have to hear the cries of my children, for bread...